Friday, December 31, 2021

Happy New Year In Advance

I tried going to bed about an hour ago but could not get to sleep. I was just tossing and turning and the dog jumping up to join me and then doing much the same did not help. So, maybe, just maybe, I will be up until just after midnight when I will say Happy New Year as I am wishing you in advance now in case I do not make it.. Thus, if I cannot keep my eyes open until then, that Happy New Year I just gave will have to do!

All the best for 
a truly better year this new year,
GB
 
Edited To Add: I am still up to say Happy New Year On Time at 2400/0000!

Betty White Is Lighting Up Heaven Tonight

 Betty White, one of America's favorite actresses, passed away today at 99, less than 3 weeks short of her 100th birthday. Stars, directors, producers and of course her fans have been leaving words of tribute to her.

One star, who worked with Betty was Valerie Bertinelli. She said one of the simplest yet nicest things about Betty, maybe the nicest words I have ever read about someone who has passed on: 

"Rest in peace, sweet Betty. My God, how bright heaven must be right now."

Kind of says it all I think.
RIP Betty White and thanks for the laughs.

All the best,
Glenn B


FUCK NY STATE'S GOVERNMENT

 Reason enough, plus more, for saying so can be found here: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/new-york-prioritize-non-white-people-low-supply-of-covid-19-treatments 

All the best, 
GB


Wednesday, December 29, 2021

I Keep Forgetting To Ask (and to tell)...

 ...what did you get for Christmas? I got some thermal shirts, some flannel shirts, a 4 slice toaster (to replace the 2 slice one I had), a Mr. Coffee (to replace the old worn out one I had), a gift card to Bass Pro Shops, a pair of Hatch Resister Gloves (because I asked Santa for them) and that's it for my presents (more than enough and probably more than I deserved). The gloves are made from goat skin with a Kevlar liner. I've been wearing them since around 9/11 when my agency issued them to us. They last a long time. I still have my second pair that I wear currently and have had for several years now that show very little appreciable wear. These new ones are going to be for future use; I figured the way prices are going, by the time I would need a new pair to replace the current ones, I would not be able to afford them. So I asked Santa nicely and he obliged, Santa being my son.
 
What did you all get?
 
Lest I forget, I bought myself a couple of guns at a Hessney.com auction a couple of weeks ago but they have not yet arrived and a I got myself a Vortex Solar SPARC red dot scope as well. Of course, they really do not count as Christmas gifts per se as they are more indulgences than anything but it is a nice time of year to indulge one's self. Hope your Christmas was a nice one.

All the best,
Glenn B

Saturday, December 25, 2021

Merry Christmas

 Merry Christmas
 
 https://getwallpapers.com/wallpaper/full/6/8/2/536893.jpg
 
If you believe in Jesus then do you realize - it really is all about giving gifts - after all wasn't Jesus God's gift to mankind. Imagine if we made an effort to make every day like Christmas by joyfully giving to one another.

That is all,
Glenn B

Thursday, December 23, 2021

Happy Festivus


 
May your aluminum pole stand bare but always erect, may the grievances aired against you be few but yours against others be loudly proclaimed & many and may you prove yourself strong by your feats of strength.

All the best,
Glenn B

Tuesday, December 21, 2021

A Philosophical Rant: The Cute Little Dog Next Door

That mutt has been barking & howling incessantly for at least the past 4 hours or so. It often is in that noisy state at this transition time between late night/early morning. In fact, it has been very annoying - now for at least a month or two - especially when I am trying to go to sleep any time after 9PM until 1AM on a weeknight. Right now, it is just wailing away as usual and being a friggin' extremely noisy pest as I have been trying to snooze but it has been keeping me awake. Thank goodness or my efforts to prevent her from doing so that my mongrel does not present herself as a noisy annoying pest as does, I think, my neighbor's dog.
 
I guess the owner is at work and it suffers from separation anxiety? So, here is what I did in hopes of copping with it: I changed my go to sleep hours and have tried to go to bed three hours or so later than I had been going to bed. That does not fucking help because when the owner(s) get(s) home she or he or they make a bunch of noise for an hour or two, then at least one takes a shower. The pipes running waer for the shower, being in a wall near to my bedroom, are friggin' very noisy at 1 or 2AM.

I admittedly have banged on the walls once or maybe twice in disgusted protest, that did not help. I have complained to the complex management - also no help so far. I am thinking of actually setting up surveillance and watching to see when they come and go. Then figure out when they sleep. Then when I think they are sleeping to jump up and down, bark & howl, and run the water in my shower and to do all that every night for a month but figure I should not because I am not leftist scum and because it just would not be right. Anyway, actually doing it would serve them well, I think; they have been doing it to me for well over a month but as I indicated it would not be ethical nor would it be me. 
 
Really folks, neighbors suck when - if it were not for bad manners,  they would have no manners at all. In fact that is the problem with America because if anyone truly gave a shit about everyone else, we would not be in the current predicament in which we find ourselves being at one another's throats. Why? Because we would instead exhibit good manners toward one another no matter our political affiliations; in other words we would respect one another because we would deserve that respect based upon the respect we gave first without anything other reason than us having good manners in the first place.  
 
Sadly, exhibiting good manners toward one another seems absolutely impossible with leftists being part of the picture and I am saying that as a true middle of the road libertarian.  I rally don't get it, they view anyone else as bad people with terrible ideas instead of viewing them as somebody else with an opinion whether thought wrong or right by them. It's how I viewed leftists for many years but they kept being so radically different than the rest of us, I have arrived at the conclusion that it must be something in the water or that they are just frigging out of their minds.

All the best,
Glenn B

Monday, December 20, 2021

Excellent Music - 2nd Album By Black Sabbath - Paranoid!

 I think it is nowhere nearly as good as their first album but it definitely was not bad at all. In fact, it was good enough as a follow-up that - as long as they kept on going - they would have lots and lots ardent of followers. It was that inspiring - a truly new form of music - Heavy Metal!

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWvKvOViM3g

After all these years, still music to my ears for sure!

All the best,
GB

The People Of The USA Owe...

 ...Senator Joe Manchin a huge kiss on his arse or whereever he wants it. Thank goodness there is at least one democrat who truly is concetned about the welfare of our great nation and who is willing to oppose the party line to protect it.

All the best,
Glenn B

Saturday, December 18, 2021

My NY Gun Forum Secret Santa Was Very Good To Me...

 ...this year just as he was last year even though he was a different one than the last one. In fact he was very generous.
 
Yesterday when I got home from a day away, I found this box on my door step. It is pretty big, that is a Marlin 336 in the gun sock for scale. No, the Marlin was not my gift. 
 

 When I saw the box, I kind of hoped that it did not contain one of the forum members who is quite the trickster and who, each year, sends a sexually orientated gift along with a regular Christmas gift to his giftee. He once sent me what Bruce Willis & Ving Rhames are wearing orally in the below video. Really, I never used it. By the way, it would not be too much of a surprise to me if he (the trickster) sent himself to his giftee if he thought he could survive the trip.
 
 
The box was certainly big enough to pack someone into it. Seems to be a fault of Amazon that they use boxes 3 to 4X too big for the item inside. They had one small piece of packing paper in with the gift providing zero protection, thank goodness it arrived in good shape. Just in case you do not think the box was big enough to hold someone inside of it: 

 
 Luckily for me, it did not contain the trickster, in the Gimp's outfit, nor did it contain a blow-up doll or a dead body. Instead, it was sent to me by a totally different Secret Santa and it held something very useful - a Tipton Ultra Gun Vise.
 
The new one!

While that was extremely generous and well thought out as to what I probably could use, the thing is, I already have one! I bought one last year. 
 
The one I already had!
 
So, what to do with the new one. I will not re-gift it but rather will take it to my son's place and leave it there. That way he can get some use out of it and so can I when I visit him. Sounds like a reasonable solution to me since I'd have no use for two at my place. That way, if we have to flee to either one of our places and head to the other's - once the Zombie Apocalypse or the Demogorgons turn everything into a wasteland or into the absolute Upside Down - we will be ready to repair whatever might need repairing at either place. With the zombies acting as they have been acting, that may be sooner than expected.



That truly was/is a very generous and excellent gift to give to a gun guy. My thanks to Galen (my no longer Secret Santa) over at NY Gun Forum.

All the best,
Glenn B

Monday, December 13, 2021

Time Does Not Heal...

 ...all wounds. The only way time could heal all wounds would be if death itself is the cure and that is not healing - it's just an ending. 
 
While living life though, you sometimes need more than mere time. You need the talent(s) of a healer be your wounds of the body, mind, soul or of two of them or even if of all three. 
 
All the best,
Glenn B

I Gotta Stop The Craving...

 ...to keep buying guns. Then again - no I don't - not really. It is part of being a free man and I will enjoy doing it so long as I can do it. Fuck the To heck with the libturds who think otherwise.
 
My latest two acquisitions (well I have not yet received them but they should be on their way by later this week or next week) are a 12 gauge Remington Express Magnum, wit h3" chamber & rifled barrel and a Charter Arms Pathfinder in 22 WMR circa 1971. 

Here are some pics from the auction:.
 
 1639262002198.png
1639262033632.png 
 While it was not listed as "unfired" or "as new",  the Remington seems to have been little used. Note the mag tube and the lack of apparent wear on it. It is one of the first places you see noticeable wear once this model gun has been fired a bit. This one has the slightest bit of a shine where the wear usually shows but no evident lack of color. Keeping my fingers crossed that it is like new.
 1639262078927.png,
 
 1639262108966.png 
 
The pathfinder was rated as 95% metal finish and in apparent good working order. While I probably paid too much for the revolver the thing is I want it as a keeper and they are not that easy to find any longer, at least not the old versions of the pathfinder in 22 MAG so I am happy with paying a little extra for it.

Should have some fun with them both.

All the best,
Glenn B

Thursday, December 9, 2021

Another Month Or So - Another Hessney Firearms Auction

There I was, only about 2.5K away from getting my bank account balance back to where I think it should be or at least where I'd be comfortable with the amount I have saved up. Then what did I do but start bidding on another Hessney online Sportsman Auction (Hessney.com - basically a firearms auction but this one has a variety of accessories, knives, artwork, decoys & fishing gear too). 
 
Of course, if I do not wind up with the high bid on any of the auction lots my bank account will be the better for it because if nothing else, I'll have the same amount in it and that will get me a bit more interest next month. Having even one hi bid (on a gun) likely means me having to withdraw funds to pay for it and the balance will suffer. The thing is, I have already bid on several guns and some other things like accessories and have at least a few more guns on my list of possibles. Of course, I do not imagine I'll have the high bid on each and every lot on which I'll bid but I pretty much plan to have it on at least two of them that I desire pretty badly. Not about to say which two - that really would be giving away too much information.
 
If I do have the high bids; hopefully, I will have it on the two I want the most. Having the high bids will not only mean paying for them but also will require me to figure out how to recoup that cash. Chances are I will have to sell another gun or two already in my collection but truth be told folks - that is getting harder and harder to do because I do not have many I'm willing to sell right now. There is also some ammo I can sell or so I suppose; although I doubt that would pay for the guns, it would at least give me some cash to put back into the bank.
 
It's an addiction, I swear.
 
All the best,
Glenn B

Tuesday, December 7, 2021

Take A Few Moments Today To Remember & Honor Those...

 ...who lost their live or limbs and innocence on December 7, 1941 during the Japanese attack on the U.S. Navy base at Pearl Harbor Hawaii. Up until 9/11/2001, it was the largest loss of life in a single attack on the United States of America proper. A total of 2,403 U.S. military & civilians were killed that day during the attack or died as a direct result of it. Only the attacks of 9/11, specifically the attack on the World Trade Center had a higher casualty count at 2,763 (source). Of the casualties at Pearl Harbor, not counting those wounded who survived, the fatalities break down like this by branch of service and civilians:
  
2,008 Navy
218 Army
109 Marines 

68 civilians  

Most of the deaths occurred on one ship. On the USS Arizona, a b battleship, there were 1,177 fatalities (source).

It was a horrific and surprise attack by a vicious  enemy, an enemy that later paid the price, for attacking freedom, in a manner as never seen or even imagined before when, on August 6,1945, an atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan. Then on August 9, 1945, another was set off in the air over Nagasaki, Japan. Those two devastating bombs, it is estimated they killed anywhere from about 130,000 to 240,000 people (mostly civilians) finally brought the Japanese to surrender unconditionally (source).

 While those bombs ended WWII, they also ushered a new age - the atomic age and later to nuclear age in which we still live with the threat of nuclear destruction hanging over our heads each and every day. If there truly is a God in Heaven, I pray God help us that we, or any nation, never again set(s) off another such bomb and pray that no further attacks like the one on 9/11 or the one on Pearl Harbor ever happen again.

Yet, we can be thankful to the brave men and women who died or were injured and of course to those who did not die nor were injured but who fought bravely during the attack at Pearl Harbor. We also should never forget those who  answered the call, that went out after Pearl Harbor, to stand for the USA and battle our enemies until they were defeated.

All the best,
Glenn B



Sunday, December 5, 2021

I Miss Views Like This

https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2020/09/1862/1048/iStock-Fall-foliage-1.jpg?ve=1&tl=1 

 Probably color enhanced a bit but not by much from real life if any given fall is in full blaze before the leaves fall! 

All the best,
GB

Saturday, December 4, 2021

Is It Coincidental That Russia & China Have Flexed Their Military Muscle...

 ...at the same time more or less relative to their neighboring countries and making it look like invasions are imminent. I think it is no coincidence and also believe that what we have seen so far may be all the warnings we are going to get before one or both of those world powers commence(s) military action against the nation(s) they have in effect been targeting. Should Russia and China actually both invade their neighbors, the Ukraine in the case of Russia and Taiwan in the case of China (both allies of the United States of America) what will we do. 
 
My guess is little more than spout rhetoric from the mouth of the current presidential administration. Of course, we may also take action and my further guess is that if we do take action it will be essentially ineffective and that any countermove by Russia and China may bring us to our knees like the weakling they believe us to be under Biden or may land us smack dab into the middle of a nuclear attack and WWIII. Of course - none of our experts seem to believe that to be possible but I seem to remember that is what out experts thought in 1941 too when the December 7th attack on Pearl Harbor took place and landed us in WWII. Those two other nations currently see us as being extremely weak right now because of us having extremely weak and ineffective leadership (if you can call Biden & Harris leaders), because of our terrible economy, because of supply chain issues and because one of our military leaders had pledged to notify China if we planned to attack them under president Trump (I cannot believe this guy is still in the military). I would not be surprised if they staged concurrent attacks on the 7th.
 
Besides all that, Joe Biden seems to be in the pocket of China and seems to be a mumbling fool when it comes to Russia (he is talking about economic sanctions should Russia invade the Ukraine, one of our allies). I would like to doubt that I am even possibly correct but I am an absolute pessimist when I see all the things going on with our enemies beating the war drums and virtually nothing going on with our president except him making up new mask mandates and lying through his face about his own past exploits. Honestly folks, I think his son would be a better president than him (although I am not suggesting that Brandon ever even consider politics and thus continue to ruin the USA). 
 
So, what is bumbling Biden's plan right now to deal with these situations? Well, he is going to have a meeting with Putin on December 7th (is it a coincidence that was the date of the last invasion of the United States by a foreign power). Let me tell you in his own words what he expects:
 
"We’ve been aware of Russia’s actions for a long time and my expectation is we’re gonna have a long discussion with Putin," (source). 
 
Meanwhile, Russia has 94,000 troops on the Ukrainian border poised to attack if that is what they decide to do. What will SlowJoe do then! He plans to place economic sanctions against them (source). He said we have no shortage of sanctions but we evidently have a shortage of oil. Wasn't he just recently begging the Saudis and the Russians to produce more oil hoping that wold lower oil prices that have skyrocketed (source) under his administration!
 
"...Biden in August 2021 begged Saudi Arabia and other Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and Russia (OPEC+) to pump more crude oil." (source). 
 
Then when Russia and other nations did not produce more to help lower prices, what did Biden do but dip into our strategic oil reserve - not once but twice. Guess where it was expected he would send those reserves - China & India (source). Our oil reserves are now lacking for us but maybe are a big help to at least one of our enemies. Should we wind up in a war with them, their jets - the same invading Taiwan's air space as of late - may wind up dropping bombs on us while burning the fuel we gave to them. Our fossil fuel situation is a far cry from what it was under president Trump when we had oil independence for the first time in more than 6 decades (source). What the heck is wrong with how Biden and the leftists in this country think or is it they just do not think!
 
Let's go Brandon or better yet, let me say it outright - FUCK JOE BIDEN because my bet it that is what Vladimir Putin will tell him just that on Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. It would not surprise me in the least if Russia and China attack their neighbors on that day and would only surprise me a little bit if they went straight for the big money and attacked us as well. Of course, all the muscle flexing is probably just a way to get Sleepy Joe to acquiesce to the whims of the Russians & the Chinese. As I said, they see us as weak and I am sure they want to capitalize on our weakness but then again, who knows what evil lurks in the minds of commies.

All the best,
Glenn B

Friday, December 3, 2021

Moronic Carjacker - A Potential Darwin Award Winner

No way to embed the video here, so if you want to ring a smile to your face, use the link to Twitter to watch an unsuccessful carjacking and a very successful attempt at foiling a carjacking. More at the source: https://twitter.com/i/status/1466439577799962629

All the best,
Glenn B

Thursday, December 2, 2021

I Officially Am An Old Fart

I applied for Social Security benefits and Medicare Part B today. I applied for part A last year but held off on Part B because I could not get anyone at the Social Security office or at Medicare to contact me to give me information about Part B. Taking it now though after having learned some more about it by other means. 

My Social Security will be reduced drastically because of the federal Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP). In essence, because I am a federal retiree receiving a federal pension, my Social Security benefits get pillaged by the government regardless of the fact that I paid into Social Security when I had employment before and after my government civil service. 
 
While others, who do not receive federal pensions get the regular SS benefit based on what they contributed - federal retirees do not because their amount is greatly reduced by WEP. Somehow the government thinks we (government retirees) are receiving a windfall because we get a pension and social security. Well, if you receive a pension from private company and also get Social Security - your social Security is not reduced by WEP. You paid in and you get back the regular full amount due you from SS. I do not see why their should be a difference between us but there is a big difference.
 
Somehow the government twists this for federal retirees and they screw us over and reduce our SS payments even though we paid into it (while employed in other than government jobs either before federal employment, during it or after it) like anyone else who has enough private sector quarters. Screw the government. Anyway, I just hope that my SS benefit will cover the cost of the Medicare Part B.

All the best,
Glenn B
 
 

Wednesday, December 1, 2021

I Figured I Had Best Skedaddle...

 ...from the range today when I heard and then saw a pick-up truck pull into the range parking lot. I have been overdue for a trip to the outdoor range and had decided today was the day to bring along my Marlin 336 and my Remington 141 both in 35 Remington along with a few pistols. Before hitting the range though, I stopped at the Miller County Sheriff's Office to renew my annual nonresident range pass and was happy to see the price had not gone up, still only $20.00 for a one year use of the range. The range is rather primitive although it has decent benches, the firing line area has a concrete floor and is covered by a roof and there are a few picnic tables behind the line. There are no target stands, no range officers, and while the range is usually rather messy, it was pretty clean today. You get what you pay for though and a year of shooting is okay by me, almost as good as free. I just wish they had some better rules on their range rules sign(s), the rules were made up by someone with little good knowledge of being - or experience as - a range master or instructor in my opinion.
 
When I got there every bench was vacant, the only person nearby was a Sheriff's Officer who drove by in his patrol car. I was happy, I could shoot safely. As I have mentioned before about this range and some others (that actually are free) elsewhere in Arkansas, I do not like to shoot at them when others are present. That is because there seems to be a high ratio of knucklehead shooters to safe shooters and the knuckleheads most certainly are not safety conscious. So, as soon as I realized that pick-up tuck had pulled into the range lot, I started to pack to leave. Yeah, I could have given them a chance to see how they'd be but it was not necessary because the second one of the four of them walked behind me with his gun slung and bouncing on his belly with the muzzle pointed at me. It was odd he had it slung like a lefty would sling it, muzzle to the right; yet, I later saw he was a righty. A few moments later, he was handling his AR behind the line while others were at the benches on the line. At least he did not load it, I think, until he was at a bench.
 
Now, these four folks, two guys and two gals were courteous enough and said hi to me but the AR belly bouncer gave me some grave concern and I was happy that I was ready to go before they started shooting. The other guy seemed much more range safety savvy. He only handled his AR behind the line with the muzzle pointed up and then only pointed it downrange once at a bench. He then announced he wanted to go downrange, I let him know I was clear and it was safe. I also went downrange to get my target but kept looking back to make sure I was not swept.
 
Speaking of my target, let me go back to before those 4 folks a showed up. I got a total of 4 shots off with the Remington 141 using Winchester Super-X, 200 grain PSPs. Three of those were spread out in the 7 ring of an already used (by 22 LR shots it seemed) target I found in the trash. The target was a Shoot N See stick on; it was 8 inches across. The 4th shot was just below the target, into the box onto which the target was stuck. I had been aiming dead center of the Shoot-N-See target.
 
I wondered how differently the other ammo I had with me might do in the same rifle. That other ammo was Hornady Leverevolution, 200 grain, flex tip. I fired off 5 shots of that at the same target also aiming dead center. I was amazed at the difference. See for yourself:
 





The 4 shots with the Winchester ammo are circled in green, the 5 shots with the Hornady ammo in red. The target was set up at 50 yards. There are open iron sights on the rifle, no other optics. You can see why I'd depend on the Hornady ammo should I use this rifle for hunting or any purpose for that matter.
 
 
As I said above, those were all the shots I fired because as soon as I realized those other folks had arrived, I packed to leave. As I was about to put my car into reverse to leave the lot, I witnessed some truly unsafe range behavior on the part of the belly bouncer and the two women. I am going to show you three pictures appearing in the order I took them. Can you see the problems?




Did you see the safety violations? In two photos they are pretty blatant and in one not so obvious. In the event you could not enlarge the photos to see what the safety violations were, allow me to circle them in the same shots below.

 
 

In each of the marked shots, there are two people beyond the firing line, both of the women. In the first shot, the woman to the viewer's right is obscured as she passes behind two uprights that block her from view. The other woman (in the purple top) is standing just forward of the line next to an upright support. In the 2nd photo, the woman to the right is now fully visible walking downrange. The woman in the purple top is still just beyond the firing line and on the wrong side of it. In the third photo, the woman in purple begins to walk downrange toward the other woman.
 
In all three photos, the guy at the second bench from the other end of the range, is aiming his rifle in with what looked to me to be his finger on the trigger. The two women and that guy (the belly bouncer) are circled in red. In two of the shots, their other associate, circled in yellow, is seen seated at the bench but as far as I could tell he was not handling his weapon but is AR was on the bench pointed downrange. 
 
These folks, at least three of them, were total idiots in my estimation totally ignorant of range safety protocol or just ignoring it. There is no way anyone should have been handling a firearm on the line or behind it while anyone else was downrange, even if only inches beyond the firing line or at the other end of the range. Of course, no one should have walked downrange while anyone was handling guns either. (I should note I did not see who did what first.) 
 
Of course, the belly bouncer also should not have allowed his AR to point at me when he first walked onto the range nor should he have handled his weapon behind the line when both I and his male associate were sitting at benches on the line. 
 
That is the way folks get shot at the range; thus, I drove away. I did not want to see one of those women or either of the guys get shot nor did I want to be shot while sitting their in my car because of their terrible lack of range safety awareness and their terrible lack of range etiquette.  
 
Should I have said something to them - it's a spur of the moment decision based on how accepting I feel the folks might be of criticism of their range habits. Today, there was no way I was going to correct three of four of them and maybe have one of them (or more) take offense and get mad at me because they seemed like the know it all types to me. I have said things before, quite politely at that, to other folks violating range safety and they have flown off the handle in anger. So, I (and you) always take a chance, when saying something about bad range habits, that the person to whom you are saying it will become angry and maybe even confrontational. Bear in mind that person is armed!
 
Folks like them are why I leave the range as soon as someone else arrives and why I usually turn my car around if I arrive there and someone else is already shooting. I may actually watch a person - if I arrive and he or she already is shooting - to see if I think it is safe for me to shoot but in my experience, at this particular range, someone already shooting there usually is a sign to just turn around and leave. 
 
Be careful out there!
 
All the best,
Glenn B

Sunday, November 28, 2021

A Wish For A Happy Chanukah/Hanukkah 2021...

 ...to all who celebrate. The festival of lights,or f the rededication of the temple, commences this evening, Sunday November 28th, with the lighting of the first candle on the menorah. The candles of the menorah are lit to celebrate the rededication of the Jewish holy temple after the Syrian-Greek occupying army was driven from Israel by a relatively small band of Jews under the leadership of Judah the Maccabee. The temple had been defiled by the Syrian-Greeks and when the Jews went to light the temple's seven branched menorah, they found they had enough oil for only one night. Somehow, that oil wound up lasting 8 days. The menorah today has nine flames, one for each of the 8 days/nights the oil lasted when the temple was rededicated and the shamash, a helper or attendant flame, from which to light the others. (More at the sources here and here and here.)
 
All the best,
Glenn B
 
 

Saturday, November 27, 2021

I Have Little To Say On The Arbery Case...

 ...and that is because I think we saw justice done with the guilty verdicts (more on the verdicts at the source). To me, a few seeming yahoo type rednecks apparently decided to take justice into their own hands and chased down a man about whom the police should have been called and been notified of his alleged suspicious activity and the whole thing left at that. There was no need for vigilante justice (which by the way I believe this case involved and the Rittenhouse case did not). This was obviously, in my view, not a case of self-defense nor even close to it. The only person who evidently tried to defend himself was Mr. Arbery from what seems to me to have been a mouth breeding redneck crusader (and his father and their friend), who despite possible good intentions, seemingly had no just cause to point his gun at Mr. Arbery. Nor I think did the three of them have just cause to stop him thus effecting a possible arrest but that is debatable dependent upon state law differing from my opinion on that matter. As I said, I think they should have called the police, reported Mr. Arbery and their suspicions and left it at that.
 
I think it was a very sad case of over zealous citizens trying to do right but screwing up badly in the extreme thus resulting in the killing of another person without any justification.
 
As for all the BLM and Black Pussies Panther and their apparent racist rhetoric (yes meaning those groups are racist in my opinion) and their evident terroristic threats of violence - the police should be investigating and arresting some of them. 
 
All the best,
Glenn B

Friday, November 26, 2021

I Hope You All...

 ...had a nice Thankgiving.

All the best,
Glenn B

There Was A Name Given To Fauci Types...

 ...back in the1940s, all of the 1950s and much of the 1960s. After all scientists, and let us remember Fauci is supposedly a scientist, gave us things back then like penicillian, plastic, space travel, jet planes, the polio vaccine and so on. Those are all great things given to us by great men - good scientists.

Of course, scientists back then also perfected (to a point) germ & chemical warfare, created: atomic weapons, DDT, what were up until then unimaginable poluttants and performed extremely cruel exepriments on & killed millions of people.

Today, we have Anthony Fauci and his reported work to make the Corona Virus more effective at infecting humans. We also have all of the mind boggling  conflicting information he has told us about Covid-19 and his part in creating it and how to prevent catching it. All the while, he essentially portrays himself as the expert scientist who is saving us from it but only after first helping to create what may become our 12 Monkeys moment.

Such scientists, like Fauci, in those prior decades, were often portrayed in the media, books and movies and most definitely were thought of as anything but great men. In fact, they were given a moniker that I think fits Anthony Fauci to perfection. They were called the title and he should forever be known as the same, as an Evil Scientist. 

I wonder, if only he would soon meet the fate of many of those so labelled in the past, would our world be a much safer place? Just a thought but my guess is yes we would be safer. I think we do not need any more Josef Mengele types to, in effect, perform their experiments at the expense of the human race.

All the best,
Glenn B

Friday, November 19, 2021

Rittenhouse Acquitted - I Was Out Walking Skye... .

...about 30 minutes ago or so when I saw the news, here, that Kyle was acquitted on all counts. 

I wish I could have been a fly on the wall, so to speak, in that jury room. As it stands now, I am hopeful that at least a few in the jury will explain what went on during their deliberations which they are legally free to discuss - and get paid beaucoup bucks by the media - now that the trial is over. Of course, they are under no obligation to do so but my bet is that the defense has already tried to discuss it with them or will do so shortly if not done already and so will the media. My guess is as it was before, that it was probably only one or two jurors who were holdouts for a guilty verdict. I am guessing they were persuaded of his innocence after reviewing the information that was supplied to them last night or the night before, by the judge, as to what constituted self-defense.

There evidently is hope for America, our Constitution, our legal system and out right to defend ourselves. Justice was done. As for the media, they should hang their heads in shame for the lies they told about the defendant. As for the prosecutor, I believe he should face possible charges for prosecutorial misconduct. As I see it, he lied in his opening statement, lied in his closing statement, mislead the jury time and time again and disobeyed long standing legal precedents and the orders of the judge about those precedents at least a few times. There is no way that man should ever again be allowed to try a case. Just the fact that he charged Mr. Rittenshouse with illegal possession of a short barreled rifle without ever having measured the barrel showed he was coming at this case from a purely political point of view in my opinion and the other things I mentioned compounded the fact that he was not after justice but only the fame he would have gained had he been able to convict Mr. Rittenhouse.

I should note, the first verdict read was the key that all the others would be not guilty, that is if I have the layers and there roles correct. The count involving the death of Joseph Rosenbaum was the one Mr. Rittenhouse had to beat. Mr. Rosenbaum, if I got it right, was the unarmed man that he killed.He also was the one trying to go after Rittenhouse to take his rifle from him and who had said prior to that that he was going to kill Rosenbaum and another man if he could catch them alone. I think there could have been no question that Kyle Rittenhouse defended himself against the two others he shot - that those two shootings were in self-defense almost seem undeniable if tried by reasonable jurors. I believe that only the shooting of Rosenbaum was even faintly questionable by reasonable jurors but it was my personal belief, after hearing testimony, that shooting was most definitely self-defense. I have been wrong and right about such things before but would bet I am right on this one but only jurors openly discussing what went on in the jury room could confirm or deny my belief.

As for Kyle, I wish him the best of luck in the civil lawsuits that I anticipate he will,face. I also hope he will be able to get beyond the trauma of killing fellow human beings. He will likely forever, at least in some way, feel guilt for having done so no matter how justified was he. The other thing he will need to overcome is the mental trauma of an unjust prosecution. That it was emotionally destructive can be seen by his response to the verdicts. 

As for the defense team, my hat goes off to them. The small donation I made to Mr. Rittenhouse's defense was not wasted. I will forever wonder if the prosecutor was as inept and corrupt as he appeared to be or if he was in fact a supporter of Mr.Rittenhouse because I am of the opinion that he did almost as much as the defense team to assure that Mr. Rittenhouse would be found not guilty as did they. It is ironic but he may actually deserve some credit for Kyle's acquittal! 

Lest I forget, my hat goes off to the judge. He was spot on the way he handled this case and as to the legality of the issues at hand. He has a lot of courage as I think many judges would have allowed the prosecutor to get away with what I see, and I am certain the judge saw, as his misconduct during and before the trial. That he did not call a mistrial based upon prosecutorial misconduct but rather allowed the case to move forward which in the long run, with the acquittal, is much better for Mr. Rittenhouse. The judge, by upholding proper jurisprudence, probably painted a target on his own back at which one must fear lunatic leftists will take aim. He is undoubtedly a courageous and just man.

All the best,
Glenn B  

The Partial Lunar Eclipse...

 ...going on right now as I type and almost at its peak, over Texarkana, TX, right now is absolutely stunning. A small sliver of the moon looks its normal color and the remainder of it looks sort of Mars like red. There is only a small sliver of it that is not eclipsed. They say it is the longest partial eclipse in about 600 years. It began, hereabouts, at 0002 and will end at 0603. Six hours and one minute is a damned long eclipse! 
 
Hopefully it will be a good omen for Kyle Rittenhouse and will bring him verdicts all of not guilty later today!

All the best,
Glenn B

Tuesday, November 16, 2021

There Are Three Reasons...

 ...which come to my mind as to why the Rittenhouse jurors have not yet returned a verdict. Two are bad for Kylee and one is good. 

One is that they have one or two holdouts who do not agree with the rest of the jurors. So if 10 or 11 are voting not guilty, the other one or two are voting guilty regardless of the overwhelming evidence supporting his defense of self-defense. Of course it could lean in the other direction of only one or two for acquital. Either way, this is not good for Kyle and could wind up as a mistrial with it being tried again before another judge who is not as strict about prosecutorial misconduct.

Another is that they are leaning toward convicting him of at least one major count and are deciding on that one. Also not good for Kyle.

The third is they are already of a consensus to acquit but are essentially just wasting time to make it look as if they deliberated a good long time before arriving at a verdict. This is good although admitedly nerve wracking for a defendant

Hoping for not guilty on all counts,

Glenn B

A Verdict by 130 PM Or Sooner...

 ...would most likely be good for Kyle Rittenhouse. It would be a long enough deliberation for the jurors to say they were seriously at it long enough. It also gives them time for lunch on the government. 

Much longer than that might be a big problem for Kyle. Of course while you can never predict, with certainty, what a jury will do, those are my guesses. I have some fair amount of experience with criminal prosecutions and trials and base my guesses on that. The earliest I see that they could come back with a verdict is after 2 hours in the jury room but then they would miss free lunch!
 
All the best,
Glenn B

Monday, November 15, 2021

Tonight I Will Say A Prayer...

 ...for verdicts of not guilty in the Kyle Rittenhouse case. I do not pray often, in fact I rarely do so but if there really is a God or gods, maybe he or she or them will see me praying and figure it must be important because I pray so rarely. One can have hope my prayer (and probably many of yours relative to this) will be answered. The man is assuredly not guilty when based upon the facts. The prosecution should be ashamed of itself for not only continuing the trial after their own witnesses gave credence to Rittenhouse's claim of self defense but because it is obvious the prosecution made several attempts to force a mistrial and also made several totally bogus claims when those claims are compared to the actual evidence and testimony of witnesses. 
 
To think, they even tried to charge Mr. Rittenhouse with a misdemeanor charge of having  possessed an illegal weapon saying it was a short barreled rifle. In fact, they had not even taken the time or made the effort to measure the barrel's length until so ordered by the judge as I understand it. When it was finally measured, it proved not to be a short barreled rifle but I guess that did not matter to the prosecutors when the charge was filed! What amazing frauds they apparently are in as much as they are supposed to be seeking justice and not to be promoting a bogus trial in a kangaroo court as it seems is all they have been doing.

All the best,
Glenn B

Why Does The Rittenhouse Prosecutor,...

...whom I consider, in my opinion, to be nothing more than a lying unjust moronic arsehat, have his right index finger where it is in the below photo? Take a look, then think about it, it could have turned out just like the shooting on the film set in Hollyweird recently. 
 
Besides him being what I think is a lying sack of turd he is obviously an outright idiot if in fact that was the actual rifle used by Kyle Rittenhouse when he defended himself (note the optics that appeared on it from news photos of the actual incident are now absent).

 Prosecutor holds AR-15 in court to demonstrate how Rittenhouse held weapon
 
Too bad it did not have a live round in the chamber and that he did not put the bullet into the courtroom wall or ceiling; of course I say too b ad but only if he did so without hurting anyone. I am sure his carer would have ended right then and there as I think it should end. I almost cannot believe to what a moronic libtard level this guy seemingly has reduced himself during this trial. The only way he can win is if there are similar morons on the jury. If that happens, my bet is the defense will be granted a mistrial.
 
All the best,
Glenn B

Thursday, November 11, 2021

Penicillin & Doxycycline Will Cost Extra

Yes folks, an Austrian brothel has come up with a surefire way to increase the percentage of folks, at least males, who voluntarily get the Covid-19  vaccination. They are offering a free 30 minute romp with a woman of choice IF they come into the brothel to get vaccinated onsite. Yep, the Austrian government is allowing a brothel to administer the vaccination. Their business has not been as good as it is now for a long time.

 
In fact, they claim they are also vaccinating women and young males 14 and over (if accompanied by an adult). My bet is that teens have been begging mommy, or at least daddy, to take them to get the shot; although, somehow I do not think the free sex applies to the teens but who knows. More at the source including the video (if it does not show above) of a fairly hot nurse/hooker!

All the best,
Glenn B

Happy Veterans' Day To All Who Served Honorably

To all who have served honorably in our military, I wish you all the best today and always. You have done your country proud by your honorable service and we owe you for that. It is a crying shame you are all too often not given the respect you deserve by your fellow Americans. 

I think, all Americans should take at least a few moments today to salute you today so that all of us remember and honor your commitment to protect and serve the USA.

With respect and thanks,
Glenn B

Friday, November 5, 2021

How Do I Get A Job With Project Veritas (Serious Inquiry)

The FBI, under the Brandon Biden Administration, has allegedly raided the homes Project Veritas journalists under the authority of (a) Grand Jury Subpoena(s) and (a) search warrant(s). This apparently all over a diary that belonged to Slow Joe's daughter and was alleged to have been stolen and then came into the possession of Project Veritas. 
 
Think of that - the FBI is evidently/reportedly investigating project Veritas over a stolen personal diary! Have you ever heard of them investigating such a crime before - the alleged theft of a diary!!! Now imagine, the scumbags agents and or assistant U.S. Attorney(s) who wrote up the Grand Jury subpoena(s) had the unmitigated gall to "request" that Project Veritas journalists keep the Grand Jury investigation secret even though they seemingly were the target of it! From whom did the FBI want the Project Veritas journalists to keep the GJ subpoena(s) secret - from the journalist's attorneys maybe!   
 
Yet somehow, the NY Slimes Times (what I used to think was once an excellent newspaper but that I think has turned into maybe even less than a leftist promoting propaganda yellow journalism type rag) contacted Project Veritas officials asking for comment on the so called secret Grand Jury investigation! 
 
I sure would like to hear all the information from both sides on this one but somehow I seem somewhat predisposed to already believe the Project Veritas side of it. Let's face it, each time I have seen one of their exposes it has been just that - an expose of the untruths told by leftists. Never once have I seen a Project Veritas report debunked but I have seen many of their reports in which they squarely outed a lot of lying scum on the left. In addition, with my past familiarity with and working knowledge of the SDNY and of having worked on several collateral investigations with the FBI, my money is on this being solely politically motivated and possibly illegal investigation. More here:
 
 
I have to say, I'd love to be able to work with the folks at Project Veritas. I spent 32 plus years in law enforcement with the federal government and did not engage in behavior that violated people's constitutional, natural or human rights. I was and remain proud of the work that I did and the way I did it with integrity. I hated the scum with whom I worked that did not have a similar ethic or regard for the Constitution and people's constitutional rights (although most I knew and worked with had integrity some few in my experience did not and they were reprehensible). 
 
I was and am proud to be a United States Citizen and a former but now retired federal agent & officer / civil servant. I firmly supported and still do support the Constitution and our rights & liberties that we citizens & legal resident aliens are afforded within our Constitutional Republic. I despise what our nation has and continues to become - one filled with leftist loons who advocate for anti-American goals, who hate our Constitution, who promote or even commit criminal activity, who wish to unleash anarchy by destroying law enforcement and criminal justice and who lie and cheat at every possible moment to further their cause of so called progressiveness. I detest those who make a mockery of our nation, our laws and our rights & liberties in order to advance leftism, anarchy, communism, socialism or fascism - those who would literally destroy the United States of America and kill off or enslave those who support this country and her Constitution. If I could expose them and bring the truth about them to light so as to debunk them and prevent them from destroying our great nation, the way these folks do so at Project Veritas, it would be an honor to do so and I would do so with unfailing love for the USA and with great eagerness and pride!
 
All the best,
Glenn B

Thursday, November 4, 2021

Ten Years and a Day

 Yesterday was an important anniversary for me. Well, maybe not that important since when I remembered it last night, I was too lazy to get up, walk over to my laptop and write this post. At least I am doing it today as I sit here under blue skies in the sunshine of a crisp chilly November morning at the local dog park. I brought Skye here to romp and up until right now she has been chasing squirrels. That changed, a moment ago, as a young lady with another dog just came in. I digress so let me get back on course.

Today is the day after the 10 year anniversary of my retirement from federal service. Retirement has been good to me and mostly agreeable & enjoyable so far. 

Maybe more importantly though is that it is the day after the 10 year year anniversary of my last day of cancer treatments. The day the docs assured me there was still hope. They did that because my tumors were still large. They told me that both the radiation and chemo treatments would keep working for weeks after being last administered. They did not instill much hope within my psyche which was pretty much devastated after 7 weeks of torturous treatments. I maye have had a little bit of hope after hearing their words but a little bit may be an over statement because the tumors were still large and fear filled my soul much more than did hope. 

Luckily for me, lots of fear and a bit of hope were not all I had that day. I had family & friends who stood by me. With their help, what hope I had grew a bit more each day as they urged me stay hopeful. Had they not, I might have considered another option, one I would rather not think of now.

They worked - both the treatments and being hopeful. In March 2012,  my cancer was diagnosed as being "resolved". That is the best word, I think, that a cancer patient can hear. So, here I am today living another day in Paradise 10 years and a day after my last treatment and after my retirement day. Whoopee. 

All the best,
Glenn B

Monday, November 1, 2021

Wasted Some Time At A Gun Show This Past Weekend...

...and I do mean wasted. I attended the Conway, AR gun show along with Brendan (not Brandon) and we had two tables. To say it was a waste of our time may be an understatement as it wound up being a waste of money too. That was because along with the money to rent the table, there is the cost of whatever you are trying to sell plus gas and food and such. Then there is AR sales tax on whatever you sell at the show. I sold almost nothing (even though my ammo prices were all at cost); I probably lost a bit more more than what I sold, accounting comes later. I was trying to merely recoup money for some prior purchases of things I do not need and was hoping for at least my expenses back. You win some - you lose some. Of course, it was nice spending time with Brendan and Skye who was a good pooch throughout - I always enjoy that but the gun show itself was not productive and was a tedious effort.
 
I made the rounds too, thinking of buying a Remington 870, 12 gauge, 20" smoothe-bore barrel with rifle sights but had no luck finding one. I must have seen a half dozen or more barrels for 870s but not the one for which I was looking. I also saw lots of guns and ammo for sale but the prices were outrageous even though prices have gone down considerably from what they were a few to several months ago. Some - if not most - of the dealers still were asking super-high prices for ammo. 
 
There was the nothing special for sale that I saw but there was an admittedly a fairly nice shape Mosin Nagant 91-30. The thing about that was it had an asking price of $650! Wait a moment - I almost forgot - there actually was at least one thing that was well worth the asking price. I am kicking myself in the butt for not buying a Marlin 336 in 30-30, in apparently great shape, that someone was waiting with on the line outside. He was asking $400 and like an idiot I said no. Another guy walked up right then and asked how much and said "I'll take it" as soon as he heard the price. In my defense, I had had a terrible night's sleep and was still half asleep but that is a poor excuse for not making a buy like that nowadays!
 
The previous weekend, I was at  gun show in Longview TX. I pretty much broke close to even there. While there, I did manage to pick up two 12 gauge barrels for a Remington 870. One was an 18" smooth-bore with bead front sight and the other a 20" fully rifled barrel. The price on them was not too bad for the pair and they are both in excellent shape. The 20 " smoothe-bore with rifle sights eluded me there too. 
 
All the best,
Glenn B

Wednesday, October 27, 2021

If This Is True - I Would Be Ashamed...

 ...to be a federal agent, in any agency at all, working under the Biden regime. If in fact, federal agents flew over a Virginia school board meeting/protest in a helicopter and others arrived on scene in unmarked vehicles to then infiltrate the crowd, we the bums in the Biden administration are no better than the the Taliban, Iranians, North Koreans, Red Chinese or Russians. More at the source.
 
I truly hope the helicopter was a media chopper but with the other things Biden and his minion have done to date - I almost believe, with little doubt, it was the feds.

All the best,
Glenn B

Tuesday, October 19, 2021

Just Ordered Some Coffee - Just In Case...

 ...it disappears from the shelves - other stuff is already either in short supply or missing altogether (FUJB). I ordered it from Porto Rico Importing Company in Greenwich Village, NY. It's a great little coffee shop with an excellent selection of coffees, teas and some candies (free plug). 
 
 
Here is what I ordered:
 
4 FRENCH BRAZILIAN DATERRA ESTATE SWEET BLUE
2 FRENCH SUMATRA MANDHELING
2 ORGANIC FT FRENCH PERU CO-OP JUMARP
2 TANZANIAN PEABERRY 
2 BRAZILIAN DATERRA ESTATE SWEET BLUE
2 CHOCOLATE COVERED CHERRIES
1 CHOCOLATE ALMONDS 
 
I ordered one of each coffee for my son & the same for me. Two pounds of chocolate covered cherries for me and one of chocolate covered almonds for him. That leaves two pounds of  the first coffee on the list for the two ladies who work in my apartment complex office; I am thinking as a Thanksgiving gift or maybe for a Halloween treat if they ask nicely and wear nice costumes!

As for mine, 5 pounds of coffee will last me at least 4 months if not 6 months at the rate I have been drinking it lately. I can go through it much quicker by drinking it at least 4 or 5 times per week but right now probably only brew & drink it two or three times per week. I do like it to taste strong and probably use as much as 1.5 to 2 times what someone else would use when brewing it. Being I like it to taste strong, the French roast is my favorite roast for a robust flavor, while a light roast is okay at other times because I use so much of it when brewing it and I drink it black almost all of the time. No doubt though, the French roast has a heartier flavor if made with equal amounts. If you like strong tasting coffees, I can highly recommend any of the French roasts listed above.

All the best,
Glenn B

Saturday, October 16, 2021

Alive & Relatively Well But...

 ...too disgusted with our president, his administration and libturds in general to blog much about current events. It is amazing to me, even though I am 66 and thus not a noob with regard to being experienced relative to politics, that Biden is apparently guilty of virtually everything of which the leftists accused President Trump (with no real evidence for any of it). In fact, there is plenty of damning hard cold evidence against Biden and against his son and other members of his administration; yet, the lefties ignore the evidence and in essence the media buries it. In fact, no matter how badly Biden and his covert handlers screw up, the leftists adore him as if he is the savior of the USA. It disgusts me and I am not a Republican nor a Conservative; if I had to pick my brand of politics I would be closest to being a Libertarian but one who thinks somewhat more government is necessary than most Libertarians believe.
 
So, as it turns out, I have not been blogging much about anything lately because chances are if I had been, it only would have been about politics and I'd only have gotten myself more disgusted than I am right now. Mainly, I am disgusted and disheartened because I truly foresee a violent civil war in our near future if things do not change drastically and for the better soon. The decline in the world standing of the USA, the debacle in Afghanistan, the coziness with Red China, the destruction of the sovereignty of the United States by way of opening our southern border to a mass invasion of illegal aliens (fuck not they are not immigrants), the huge spike in rampant violent crime, the trend toward releasing criminals after arrest with no bail, the tolerance for crimes of all sorts including violent ones, the birth of the defund the police movement, acceptance by the libs of BLM and ANTIFA as good-guy groups as opposed to the apparent reality that they are terrorist and criminal organizations, inflation running wild, continued unemployment supported by the welfare state mentality, the continuation of the Covid-19 manufactured crisis (yes it is a crisis to some extent on its own but the libs have expanded that crisis beyond belief, the destruction of our education system and its replacement with those on the left brainwashing our youth in schools, the gall of the government to want to investigate those who disagree with certain government & education policies such as teaching CRT and such, the presidency having been turned in a puppet figure under the control of handlers, the unchecked erosion of citizen's rights and on and on. Damn it, what did I just say about it making me more disgusted -  now my blood is boiling thinking about the mess these leftist pieces of shit have gotten us into.
 
All the best,
Glenn B